Current-collector for electric cars.



I. IVIcIVIILLAN L C. V. GRENAMYER.

CURRENT COLLECTOR FOR ELECTRIC CARS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY I5, i915'.

Patented Apr. 3, 191,7.

3 SHEETS-SHEEI' I.

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I. MclVIILLAN & C. V. GREENAIVIYER. CURRENT COLLECTOR FOR ELECTRIC CARS.

APPLICATION FILED IULY l5; ISIS.

Patented Apr. 3, T917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2 AND I. M CIVIILLAN & C. V GREENAMYER. CURRENT COLLECTORFoR ELEcTRm cARs.

APPLICATION FILED IULY15| 1915. L22L762, Patented Apr. 3, 191?.

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JOSEPH IVICMILLAN, OF GLENDALE, AND CLARENCE V. GREENAMYER, OF LOSANGELES,

CALIFORNIA. l

CURRENT-COLLECTOR FOB, ELECTRIC CARS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 3, 1917.

Application led July 15, 1915. Serial No. 39,956.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that we7 dosnrir MCMILLAN and CLARENCE V. GREENAMYER,Vcitizens of the United States, said ltfoMiLLAN residing at Glendale andsaid GREENAMYER residing at Los Angeles, county of Los Angeles, andState of California, have invented new and useful Improvements inCurrent-Collectors for Electric Cars, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates primarily to a current collector for use onelectric railways and the object thereof is to provide a currentcollector that will be equally efficient with cars running at high speedor low speed. f

It has been found that when electric cars are run at a speed over thirtymiles per hour that part of the collector which takes the current fromthe feed wire has at all times a tendency to leave the wire anddoesleave the wire frequently for short distances thereby breaking thecircuit and causing frequent arcs which produce a destructive effectupon the insulation of all electrified parts and produces a rapiddeterioration of the conductor and feed wire. The object of ourinvention is to produce a collector in which the traveling portion willnot at any time or under any runningconditions accidentally leave thefeed wire and will at all times when the car is running engage the feedwire with a pressure sufficient to produce a reliable working contact.

ln the drawings forming a part of this application Figure 1 is a sideelevation of a portion of a car with our improved collector.

2 is an end elevation of our collector anda portion of a car.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged central longitudinal section, partly broken away,of a portion of the base of the collector.

Fig. 1 is a top plan of the parts shown in Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a detail of the contact collector with parts in elevation,parts in section, and parts broken away.

Fign isa central vertical section of the controller valve.

Figs. 7, 7a, 7b, and 7c show a modified form of the contact member.

ln the drawings 9 is an electric vcar upon the roof of which the mainparts of our colchannel 11 therein.` From this channel runs a pipe 12 tocontroller valve 13 at one end of the car. A branch pipe 14C runs frompipe 12 to a like controller valve (not shown) at the other end of thecar. These controller valves are located so as to be readily accessibleto the motorman and are connected separately to a compressed airreservoir 8 carried beneath the car.

'lfhe controller valve consists of a body casing 15 forming a valvechamber 16 in the lower portion of which is a port 17 to which pipe 12is connected. Opposite port 17 is port 18. In the casing is a rotaryvalve plug 19 which has a main or feed channel 2O running or extendingtransversely therethrough, which channel, when the car is ruiming,connects ports 17 and 18. A branch channel 21 runs from channel 2O tothe edge of the plug and may be termed the release channel.

Plug 19 Ahas an voperating handle 22 by.

means of whichthe plug is operated. An index with points marked thereonis placed near the handle. `llVhen the handle is brought to registerwith point 23 the plug is in the running position and ports 17 and 18 pare fully opened and connected and the air passes into a pistonchamberas hereafter explained. When the handle is brought to point 2Aports 17 and 18 .are only-slightly opened. Nhen the handle is brought topoint 25 ports 17 and 18 are blanked. Casing 15 has another portl 2,6which is intermediate ports 17 and 18 and is connected to channel 27 inlrelease valve casing 28. In casing 28 is a ,chamber 29 which has a T-shaped `outlet port 30. -The inner .end of port 30 is normally .closedby a valve plug `31 which has a ystem v132 rprojecting through thecasing and terminating in a. button 33. `A spring 341 normally holdsplug 31 on its seat to close port .30. A bleed hole 35 opens intochannel 27 and is regulated by a screw 36. `When handle 22 is brought topoint 37 channel 21 is brought into register with port 18 and channel 20is brought into register with port 26 .and the air from the pistonchamber may slowly pass out .of bleed hole 35. If a quick release isdesired valve 31 is ,unseated and the air quickly escapes through port30. An air cylinder 38 is connected to base block 10 by a ball andsocket joint having a channel 39 therethrough,which connects chamber pcar. Blocks 46 and 47 are connected by rods r-forin a main toggle orhinge.

pole 62 is forked at its upper end and revo.-

V48 and 49 to base block 10. Mounted on stem 42 between easing 38 andcross bar 43 is a plurality of springs of different strengths for apurpose hereafter explained. Rods 44 and 45 are preferably cross bracedby diagonal brace rods 51. Pivotally connected to cross bar 43 arecarrying rods 52 and 53 in the outer ends of which is revolubly mountedrod 54. On rod 54 is revolubly mounted the contact roller 55 which, whenthe car is running, engages the feed wire 56. Roller 55 is a hollowcylinder of conducting material Yand at the ends thereof carries membersof ball races7 one of which is shown at 57, which coact with members ofraces on rod 54, one of which is shown at 58, and with balls 59 androllers 60 form a ball bearing between rod 54 and roller 55. The memberof ball races carried by roller 55 carry contact springs 61 which engagerod 54 and conduct the current from the roller to the rod. Bar 43 androds 447 45 and rods 52 and 53 A current lubly secured to rod 54. Thelower end of pole 62 is pivotally connected to base block 10. Suitablewiring connects the lower end of the pole to the motors (not shown) onthe ear. On the outer ends of rod 54 are secured shields or projections63 which slope downwardly at their outer ends. These shields are used toprevent the roller from slipping from beneath the feed wire in case ofan un-V usual sway of the ear. A ball bearingjoint is preferablyprovided between the end of the air cylinder 38 and the piston stem 42.

In the operation of our current collector it will be observed thatbefore .air is turned .into chamber 40 the weight of the parts willcause roller 55 and connected parts to 'assume a position close to thetop of the car. In this position .the springs 50 on the piston ystem 42will be ,compressed and hold the air cylinder 38 and rods 44 and 45 attheir connected points slightly above the tie rods 48 and 49 and whenair is admittedinto chamber 40 these springs will assist the air atthestart inl raising the roller 55 to engage the feed wire. After vtherollerrhas Vbeen elevated a few feet the spring action ceases andthereafter the roller is'V raised by the air pressure on piston 41 inchamber 40. The ordinary height ofthe feed wire 'is eight 'feet 'and theparts will be so constructed and arranged that the carrying rods 52 and53 are vertical at such height, and when these rods are in alinementwith rods 44 and 45 the contact roller will be carried upward to theeXtreme height of the feed wire. At this time the piston is at itsextreme outward position and rods 44 and 45 are prevented from furthermovement away from the piston chamber. As before stated when there is noair in the piston chamber the parts lie close to the top of the car andthe springs on the piston stem hold the contact roller at ay shortdistance above theroof of the ear. In order to make the initial raise ofthe contact roller with the usual air contact pressure easier we providean auxiliary piston 64 which has a working fit in cylinder 65 whichcylinder is connected by pipe 66 with pipe l2. Piston 64 has a stem 67upon which cross bar 43 rests when there is no air in cylinder 3S.

IVhen the air is turned into pipe l2 it Hows into cylinders 38 and 65and the contact roller is started upwardly by the combined air pressureon the pistonsyin both cylinders aided by the resiliency of the springs50 on stem 42. If desired this auxiliary air cylinder and connectedparts may be omitted but we prefer its use as a quicker raise of thecontact roller from its position of non-use is effected by its use.

In Figs. 7, 7a, 7b, and 7c we have shown a modified form of the contactmember. In this form we use a rod 64 preferably square instead of roundrod 54, and instead of cylinder 55 we use a wheel. This wheel isconstructed as follows. Slidably mounted on rod 64 is the inner member65 of a ball and roller race. In the ends of member 65 are raceways 66in which are mounted rollers 67 which bear against the sides of rod 64.These rollers are held positioned by cap plates 68 which are held inplace by screws 69. The outer surface of member 65 is circular and formsone side of a raeeway 70 in which are mounted balls and rollers as shownin Fig. 5, balls 7l being shown in Fig. 7 a. Thehub 72 carries the outermember 7 8 of race way 70. For lightness of construction we provide adeep groove 74 in the outer edges of the hub. Secured to the hub at eachof the sides thereof and insulated therefrom by insulation 75 are plates76 and 77. These plates carry a grooved circular rim 78 which, when inoperative position. engages the feed wire. Plate 76 carriesa circularflange 76a made integral therewith which is engaged by contact springs79 which are secured to plate 68. There may be as many of these contactsprings as are desirable.V Mounted upon rod 64is a U-shaped guard 80which will engage the feed wire and hold the wheel from da1naging thespan wires in case the wheel should come off the feed wire. A washer 81CIK is secured to hub 72 to assist in holding the hub in alinement withmember 65. In this construction the wheel can slide along rod 64 toadjust itself to the sway of the car when running. When the rim is wornout a new rim may be substituted andthe wheel is as good .as a newwheel. In all other respects the parts of our collector are as firstdescribed.

By this construction it will be observed that we have provided a currentcollector composed of parts that form triangles when in a workingposition and act on the truss principle and enables the car to vbe runin either direction without turning the collector. It will also beobserved that the contact member is carried principally by hingedmembers which form a toggle yand that the contact pole acts'as a brace,and that the power is applied to the center of the main supporting hingeto maintain the contact member in engagement with the feed wire.

This construction enables the power to bc applied so as to produce higheiliciency with small power. By the triangular construction the usualshocking of the contact member when running at high speeds is almostentirely eliminated and arcing` is almost entirely avoided.

I-Iaving described our invention what we claim is:

l. In combination a car; a current'collector mounted thereon, saidcollector comprising a contact member adapted to engage an overhead feedwire; hinged members carrying said contact member, one of the ends ofsaid hinged members being pivotally connected to the car and the otherends carrying said contact member; -a bracing guide pivotally connectedto the car and to the contact member; and pneumatically operated meansapplied at the joint between said hinged members adapted to force thecontact member against an overhead feed wire.

2. In combination a car; a toggle mounted thereon; a contact memberadapted to engage 4an overhead feed wire carried by said toggle; a bracepivotally mounted on the car and connected to said contact member; anair cylinder mounted on the car; a piston in said cylinder operativelyconnected to said toggle at its central joint whereby when `air isadmitted into said cylinder said toggle causes said contact member topress on an overhead feed wire.

3. In a current collector for electric cars having an overhead feedwire, a contact member; supporting and bracing means for said member,said supporting means being hingedly jointed near the center thereof andpneumatically operated means connected tov said supporting means at thejoint therein adapted to exert a pressure upwardly on said contactmember from a point directly below said contact member under ordinaryrunning conditions.

In witness that we claim the foregoing we have hereunto subscribed ournames.

JOSEPH MCMILLAN. CLARENCE V. GREENAMYER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. C.

